Events and Trends Coverage

Saturday saw the return of the heavily anticipated third installment of “Nike Reset.” The event takes place bi-annually at the Nike 1948 space in Shoreditch and is host to some of the biggest up-and-comers in the streetwear industry. Past installments have helped a number of big streetwear brands really gain a foothold in the market. It acts both as launch pad for the newcomers and back-to-basics opportunities for core fans to get their hands on the latest and greatest from the likes of Trapstar who just keeps coming back for more year in and year out. Other perennial favorites at the event include “Art in Transit” aka AinT, TrinoTron and Second Son.

The faces have changed a bit and unfortunately two of our personal favourites (Carri Munden of Cassette Playa and the Dope Chef / Currency crew) were nowhere to be found this year but the new guys came out fighting this year… and I do mean fighting. After an early morning tuffle between a couple of the guys workin for Trapstar at the event and the two guys consequently not being allowed into the event things finally got kicked off properly a full two hours late.

By the time the gates were opened to the masses the queue had grown substantially and given the mad rush towards the Trapstar booth the Nike security gang had to limit the numbers in and out for a good bit. Trapstar was definitely the “main event” in as much as there was one dropping some new heat with tensions running high inside as well. In addition to a number of limited and seriously fresh originals, the usual “Dream Team” and other classics from the past were available as well.

Additionally, the crew was taking pre-orders for the chinos set to drop this summer. These were some nice lookin trousers with a big red button on the bag and some beautifully blue and white lined pockets. No word yet on pricing, but the fact that they were taking waiste, length and style preference from kids unabashedly makes me think these will be some of the hottest and most exclusive threads for this summer. I pulled the nice young lady aside who was folding up the shirts and popping them in the “Heat Wave” boxes for all the yung’uns and she couldn’t help but agree that things are going well when you can sell an item without even telling people what they’re gonna cost. If the collared shirts they are selling at £70+ a pop are any indication, you’d better start saving your gallions if you wanna be wearin these this summer.

Setting aside the old timers, I thought it would be worth focussing a bit of attention on the breakout labels of the show. Interest was moderate to newcomer “Ask Your Girl” who toe the controversial line well. Whilst their designs incorporate nearly pornographic cartoon depictions of girls they are right in pointing out that there are two sides to every story. The caption under a young lady’s silhouette (legs spread with a star covering her goodies) is “everyday a star is born” and if you look closely, you can even see the girl holding up a globe. One of the founders of the brand argued that it’s alla bout how you look at things, and while someone might look at the design and see a dirty image, it was actually quite empowering. He also argued that the name “Ask Your Girl” is also intended in the vein of “Girl Power” and empowering women. It’s catch and provides a bit of wordplay, but he insists the line isn’t supposed to refer to what you might think at first blush and it’s supposed to encourage men to care more about what their Girl is thinking.

Without putting on my feminist hat too much and hating for the implications of the possesive on Your Girl will give him the benefit of the doubt. I didn’t bother pushing his buttons too hard on the double-meaning of the hats they were pushing that simply read “Player” but I’m sure there’s a good story in it as well.

Setting aside what the intentions of the label are, I think there’s a lot that can be done with this idea and thought the designs were dope. I was feeling the reversible jumper the most, but the “Ask Your Girl” logo available in loads of world cup colors (the U.S. seemingly left out on purpose) was a nice touch as well.

In addition to the nice pieces that Ask Your Girl had on offer the winner for this year’s “best in show” goes to my man Benjart. His pieces were the highest quality of all the new comers, the designs were super tight and the crew knows how to hussle. Shirts seemed to be flying off the rails, varsity jackets were being pulled out from nowhere and deals were being made all over the place. In addition to winning “best in show” as the best newcomer repping, Benjart also gets my nod for best single design. Whilst the woman screaming/pop-art horror design seemed to be popping up left, right and center (with a nod from Art in Transit, Trapstar and Benjart) I think Benjart made the most of it by incorporating the image into his soon-to-be-famous B-splash design.

Bonus points for the Benjart crew getting the troops rallied and hyped up on Twitter before, during and after the show as well. I’m looking forward to big things from the brand.

All told, the even was a reminder of how vibrant the underground streetwear community is here in London. There were familiar faces on both sides of the booths, kids I seen queueing for Yeezy’s over a year ago and plenty of newcomers as well. This had to be the least well organised Reset I’ve seen yet, but it was worth the wait and I’m looking forward to covering another soon! There’s no better place than London for the freshest and newest and hardest to find– just ask MIA, Rihanna and all the others repping these young and exclusive brands.

My own images will be up here shortly. In the meantime, check out some of the above links, flag me down on Twitter and be sure you’re following Benjart as well for the latest news.

The new Audiobullys track is fairly catchy, but the new video is stellar and a must-see for all sneaker heads and trainer chasers. Drawing heavily on references to the footwear and urban trends subculture the video features graf, a fight and loads of dope kicks.

Amongst the allusions made all on the soles of shoes you’ll find stylistic references to Parra, Lichtenstein, KAWS, Nike 6.0, Back to the Future and other icons amongst the streetwear and popculture community.

Let us know which references we missed out on below in the comments section or give us a shout on Twitter!

So, we here at Crockstar are proud supporters of Brooklyn electro-rock duo Ratatat, so much so that we may have dropped an unreasonable sum of money to see them perform again on a side-stage for a hip hop gig featuring Kanye West, Q-Tip, Kid Cudi and a number of other heavy hitters. As much as we’re embarassed to admit it, there is a solid chance we left shortly after the Ratatat gig despite the small fortune the gig cost.

With that confession out of the way, let’s push forward. Today we finally got our hands on the much anticipated (though only recently announced) LP4. The new album is scheduled to drop on June 8 and though a few of the tracks were leaked online by music bloggers last week, the band’s label was incredibly speedy at having the tracks taken down from youtube and a number of other music blog sites extremely quickly. Some even posting the requests from XL Recordings, the bands label. Despite the fact that the label has been keeping a tight leash on the record, our trust friends at National Public Radio (NPR) have streamed the entire album as part of their “first listen program”, so a big thanks to them!

Mike Stround and Evan Mast (better known as E*Vax) have released this album by cleaning up some left overs from LP3. Though, thankfully, the album doesn’t sound like tracks that were left off from LP3. There are clearly reminders of LP3 on a number of tracks (particularly “We Can’t be Stopped” and “Bob Gandhi”) of the quieter, almost hypnotizing sound so well established on LP4’s predecessor.

However, and we are incredibly thankful for this divergence from the harps and heavy tribal drumbeats, some songs like “Sunblocks” and “Alps” have some of the loud electro-riffs that bring back fond memories of Classics (2006) and Ratatat (1999) that remind us just how talented this young duo are and how hard they can rip on guitar solos.

Verdict: 7/10

Favorite Tracks: “Alps” “Bare Feast” and “Grape Juice City”

Unfortunately, the whole album must be listened to at NPR (i.e. cannot be embedded) but give a listen and let us know what you think!

How very convenient that on a night where I’m going to check out Major Lazer here in Shoreditch, Diplo and Switch have teamed up with La Roux (another of my favorite artists) to create a free mixtape. La Roux joins the likes of MIA and Santigold in joining forces with Diplo and the Mad Decent crew on a remix album.La Roux saw all sorts of success with her breakthrough album “Bulletproof” here in the UK, which was definitely one of the best pop albums released last year. Now she gets the twisted treatment of Diplo and the added dancehall lunacy of Switch. Plus, the name for the mixtape makes too much sense to be bad.

Grab your copy of the new mixtape here. Get it now while it’s free (and easy to find for a legal download).*A word of warning- there are widespread reports of the link taking ages before it is sent to your account. Be patient as this will surely be worth the wait… and it’s free!UPDATE: If you really cannot wait you can get LAZERPROOF here, though I encourage you to provide your details and wait it out as they ARE giving away lovely music for free

So we all know that we here at Crockstar fall on the Nike side of the kicks debate. We are always open to other ideas and ocassionally will give shouts to the others, but this video (despite it’s disclaimer) is as good a reason to love the brand… even if they aren’t anywhere near squeaky clean in their supply-chain and production methods.

Please note the disclaimer: Neither Nike Free’s, nor any other Nike shoe (AT PRESENT) come preoloaded with the ability to make sweet remixes. WATCH THIS SPACE!

It seems a number of fashion icons are trying their hand at cinema these days. First Tom Ford had a smash hit with “A Single Man” and more recently German legend Karl Lagerfeld has launched this short called “Remember Now” to promote his latest collection for Chanel. The film itself is a bit slow but the scenery and the styling are certainly impressive.

Plus, it also offers a unique look into the life of the rich and famous in St. Tropez.

The story follows an older gentleman (Alexandre) as he takes a look back into his past in a strange sort of way by revisiting his “voyeuristic” past. Alexandre puts it best by describing youth as a “short-term lease, non-renewable” after he is welcomed to a young club as a “legend of St. Tropez”. Keep your eyes peeled for a special cameo from Mr. Lagerfeld himself as well.

The short is self-indulging by all means but it is a unique and very exciting way to launch a collection.

As a nice little follow up video from Forest’s daytime coverage we give you another nice little multimedia presentation of his up close and personal view into all things Coachella. And again… we find ourselves wishing we were him.

Sometimes you are truly envious of people. I was having a conversation with someone the other day about how much of a shame it was that a friend of ours spends so much time trying to get a job as a barrister (lawyer) and ultimately 5 years down the road they will hate their job just like the vast majority of other people.

However, every now and again, you meet someone who truly does have it made.

My buddy Forest Woodward is just that person. Forest makes a living as a photographer for iStock. He recently traveled to South America to help shoot a documentary on surfing and attends music festivals all over the world.

The above video is a sample of his multimedia from his coverage of Coachella this past year. He gets an up-close-and-personal look at some of the biggest names in music and gets paid for it. In addition to having a ball, his photos are top-notch and he deserves every bit of it. So, today in a shameless plug of a friend, just wanted to share with y’all a look into the madness that is Forest’s life.

This has to be one of the coolest “gadgets” I’ve ever seen (came across it at Benjart’s blog). The chair modelled after an accordion uses recycled materials and features honeycomb technology to provide the strength to allow one to actually sit on it.

You can pick up your very own chair from Flexible Love for either £250 for the 8-seater version or £450 for the 16 person version. Well worth the money when you think about how easily it can be stored and the number of people it can accomodate… and the awesome tricks you can play with the thing (a la the above video).

The chair is made from cardboard so should NOT be left outside. The furniture is made of recycled wood and paper products and using pre-existing manufacturing processes so as not to have a huge impact on the environment. At present, the furniture is readily available for online purchase in the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Taiwan though should be available by special request internationally (check the website and “buy” for more details).

This puppy get’s full marks from the Crockstar team… and given that we’ll be moving shop in the next few weeks we might be coppin’ as well.

As part of Bape’s newest collection (focussed on wrestling… which you gotta love!) they have introduced a new character to the Bathing Ape family. This man looks more super-hero than ape and it will be interesting to see how he is introduced to the collection. We’re not convinced by Apegon yet but we’ll see what sort of super powers he is capable before passing final judgement.

The topic for “professional wrestlers” and professional wrestling inspired t-shirts on the other hand is something we fully support. Here’s to hoping a Bape-o-Mania yellow and red tee is on it’s way!

The shirt will be released as part of the aptly named upcoming “Nigolden week” to celebrate the label’s 17th anniversary. The lead designer and founder of the brand Nigo will be on hand from May 1st-4th to offer a screen printing workshop and meet the adoring fans. The “Nigo’s workshop” event will take place at three different stores as part of the larger celebration for “Golden week” in Japan. Golden week celebrates “Emperor’s day” “Childrens Day” and the “Constitution Memorial Day” to celebrate the 1947 constitution of Japan.

Ultimately- the week can be looked at as a giant bank-holiday weekend and the Bape team will be pulling out all the stops in celebration.

We’ve yet to learn Japanese (slackers!) but hopefully if you are in Japan and thus likely to attend we hope you can read the below dates and location for the Nigo’s Workshop event.

About Me

This is the new home of the Crockstar Limited blog. The blog focuses heavily on trends in fashion music and the internet. The goal is to start an ethically sourced fashion label, but in the meantime the blog will offer insight into the world of an ADD fashion-loving internet geek.